Closed Turbulence (Faradae)

[Allassanachassanya]

30th Winter, 516 AV
Alvadas-Ravok Region
"Speech"
"Others"

Coming to this place called "Ravok" had been an immensely strange experience. Walking forwards through regular streets, Ssanya (of course) never knew what to expect from the city of illusion, but turning a corner to find herself walking upon something very much akin to water had made her stop outright in her tracks for a few ticks with surprise blossoming across her face. Then she chuckled under her breath, and shrugged it off.

A few chimes later and she was in the midst of the place. The water, if it could be called that, seemed to pool very gently around her feet as she walked, always threatening but never quite pulling her under. It was cool to the touch, and more heavy than it looked. This part of Alvadas was certainly interesting, with houses floating atop boats of all kinds- flat, long, thin, wide... some barges, some almost like fishing boats. But she was getting used to the city by now. Its ways were confusing, but as long as she put aside her reservations then it was easier, in a way, to get by here.

She didn't have much to do today, and so simply found herself wandering. Yet after a while, her walk came to a natural stop as she sat down on someone's jetty. It was attached to their house, and jutted out onto a small plaza of liquid floor that was relatively quiet. It was a surprisingly peaceful place, enclosed on three sides as it was by the house-boat-things that bobbed gently up and down with some unseen current. Ssanya stretched her legs out and pulled her notescroll out of her rucksack and started to prepare the small vial of paint.

It was a day to put down idea..- With shock, Ssanya's elbow was knocked as someone or something crashed into her, sending a small pot of paint flying and her scroll fluttering across the plaza. She cursed angrily in Snake-tongue, dashing up to grasp at the merry scroll that simply rolled out of her grasp. A sharp gust of wind took it and blew it further, she chased it for a tick or two until she had it back in her grasp as she spun angrily on her heel to glare at whatever had knocked her. Her hands, she noticed, were covered in black paint.

A man was glaring right back at her. The two faced each other silently for a moment, until the taller stranger spoke with a deep, bass rumble. "That'll teach you for sitting on other people's property, you filthy snake." She blushed unnoticeably underneath her tan skin, and her mouth opened sharply to utter a retort, when he spoke again, an unpleasant curl in his voice. "I was surprised a change-blood like yourself had the courage to sit on my property, though. Don't you know who I am? I like to hunt hybrids like you. Be petching glad it's my day off. You better be gone by the time I'm out again though, little shyke-face, otherwise..."

He drew his finger across his throat, a sardonic smile on his features as he turned and walked into his house. Ssanya was shaking like a leaf, not from fear, but from anger. How dare he threaten her? Threaten her race? She almost considered shifting to her full-blown Dhani form and confronting him, but she was wary. If he hunted people like her, it was very likely he was prepared for venom and physical strength. Plus, she wasn't a great fighter. She strode to the other side of the plaza, clutching the scrap of scroll in her paint-stained hands, and stared at the man's house as she considered what to do.

Fight, or Flee?

[Faradae]

Faradae When Faradae had stumbled into the Wolf’s Cave late the other night, the rock formation its entrance was located in had been peeking out of a layer of snow. Now, the snow was gone, replaced by what seemed to be a full-fledged lake. A water-like substance lapped at the stairway below the entrance and Faradae wondered whether the city had changed or the house has moved while she was not looking. She was almost certain the neighbouring houses had not been here yesterday, and she would definitely have noticed if they had been floating atop large boat-like structures. Curious, she reached for the fluid with her boot-tip. Surely enough, it felt as wet as it looked, but it was not too deep to walk in. Setting one foot in front of the other, Fara carefully tracked down the road the inn was currently set on. She just hoped she would be able to find it again, later. Apparently, Alvadas currently designed itself after different regions. Yesterday, she had almost fallen into a rim that was suspiciously reminiscent of the Aperture in Nyka and from afar, she had spotted a building that looked a little like Stormhold Castle. What place this lake landscape was designed after, she could not tell, but she liked it nonetheless. Alvadas, she knew, was ever changing, and one could spend days upon days just discovering new oddities around every corner. Originally, her goal for this day had been to find a place where she could register herself as a courier, but on second thought, she was not certain that was a good idea after all. With all the changes the city went through whenever she turned a corner, how was she ever supposed to find her way? There were no settled addresses, no consistent landmarks, and no directions. She might have to ask around for years just to deliver a single note. Perhaps she could ask at the Sanity Centre how these things were handled in Alvadas. In front of her, a family of black ducks swam straight across what seemed to be the street, quacking enthusiastically and not at all disturbed by Fara’s human figure. She smiled at the sight and watched them disappear behind a front of houseboats. A breeze was rising, ruffling her hair with windy fingers. It smelled of rain that had not yet decided whether to fall. Farther away, she could hear a voice, obviously irate and a bit scornful. Feet shuffled and someone jumped into – or rather onto – the lake. Faradae turned left; passed a couple of altered cutters and saw the woman those steps had belonged to. She was small, compared to Fara, but a look at her face revealed that she was, indeed, adult. Faradae knew better than to be surprised. After seeing Pykons, she was not sure any kind of appearance could strike her as odd anymore. Her hands were black and cramped around something – a piece of paper, perhaps a note or a map and with narrowed eyes, she stared at the last house in this cul-de-sac. While nothing about her screamed “approachable”, Faradae could see that she was struggling with some kind of internal conflict, and the last time she had met someone on the street, it has turned into an adventure. One that involved bruises and scratches, sure enough, but she was willing to take that risk. “Greetings, good lady.”, she called before she came closer. She did not wish to startle the woman by approaching silently from behind. “My name is Faradae. Is anything the matter?”

[Allassanachassanya]

"Speech"
"Others"

Despite the woman's precautions, Ssanya still grimaced with shock at the disturbance provided by the stranger that approached her, but soon softened when she realised it wasn't the man from before. She paced, backwards and forwards, a restless urge to do something stirring in her that she couldn't ignore. Yet the woman was still there, despite her inattention, and so she looked up through dark brown eyes to cast a relatively warning gaze to the stranger. "You do not want to get... trapped in my problemsss, woman. Sssufisse to ssay I wasss provoked by ssssomeone who livess in thisss housse." She flinched and broke off as when her gaze inevitably flickered to the house, she noticed a shadowy figure showing in an upstairs window for a fragment of a tick before slipping away again.

Ssanya almost snarled. She was torn between two decisions. One was based on sensibility- this Dhani's nature for self-preservation was desperately screaming at her, in case this antagonist spoke true and attacked her. Yet on the other hand, her pride in her race and herself, and most especially dedication to Siku, made her champ at the bit and wish to break open the man's house and confront him with her full Dhani self. Yet, she was only small compared to her compatriots, and as such her doubts held her back, leading her to an impasse.

Either way, it would be best to clean up. Ssanya stuffed the ruined parchment into her bag and scrubbed her hands together to rub off the worst of the paint, before picking and peeling the rest as she held her waterskin over them to wash the remaining bits off. Then she glanced at the woman again, and felt a slight pang of guilt. She seemed kindly enough, not entirely deserving of her distracted ire. "I am Ssanya by the way. You would be... aah, sssafer away from this man. Of coursse, he would not threaten you, but a dangerousss man like that cannot be trusssted."

That was when her entire body ran tense, and her attention snapped to the doorway that had opened with a thud. The man stood there, a sharp grin curling his lip as he stood wearing... was that black armour? Ssanya's heart thudded to her stomach, but she stood tall and firm, dropping her rucksack onto the floor beside her, mind apparently made up.

"Truly I wasn't expecting you to stick around, freak. This should be fun! Oh, and lady?" This was directed towards Faradae. "I would mind out the way if I were you. This woman, if you can call her that, is a snake changling, a freak of nature that needs to be purged." He said it so matter-of-factly that it was clear in that moment that the man was quite mad. Or at least, that's how Ssanya felt, as her hands bunched into fists and she hurriedly searched for somewhere to shed her clothes if she needed to so she could swiftly as possible turn into her Dhani form.

[Faradae]

Faradae Faradae flinched a little when the woman turned her way. It was not because of her face – sun kissed and slender, with deep brown eyes, it wasn’t too unsettling – it was the voice, the pronunciation, the wild and slightly hostile expression. There was something undeniably predatory about her that Fara had not noticed from behind. As soon as these thoughts crossed her mind, Faradae straightened up a little in an instant reaction to mask her sudden insecurity. After all, she was the bird of prey. The other woman’s glance ghosted back to the house at the end of the alleyway and Faradae thought she saw a flicker reflected in her eyes. She had said there was trouble with someone who lived here, and Fara agreed that it might be best not to get involved in strangers’ business, especially when said strangers were clearly not interested in her interference. She was ready to excuse herself and leave when Ssanya introduced herself and struck an almost apologetic note. Faradae turned back to her. “What do you mean-“ She was cut off by the door springing open, and from it emerged a shape that reminded her of the Syliran knights she had seen. The man’s armour was almost pure black, reflecting just a small portion of sunlight and emanating a malicious gleam. Faradae was almost certain there were bloodstains she could not see. Her reflex to flee kicked in; she could tell when she stood no chance and this was one such situation. Maybe she could shift right here, and then… “This woman, if you can call her that, is a snake changeling, a freak of nature that needs to be purged.” …no. The statement he had just made was something she could not help but take personally. Faradae knew what it was like to be different from people around her. Raised not to show her nature too openly, it had never caused her too much hassle, but she knew there were people who thought differently, who disliked anything they did not understand. Out of all places, Alvadas was the last she had expected to run into something like that. With its ever-changing nature, the city had felt like a safe haven to anyone different. Apparently, she was mistaken. Moreover, Ssanya was not anyone different; she was very much like Fara herself. Perhaps, she, too, was Kelvic? He had called her a “changeling”, a snake, which explained the vibe she had emanated before. Faradae’s tension eased, for some reason she sympathized with Ssanya without knowing her backstory. This man needed to be punished for his generalized hate alone. She felt like a head-on clash might not be the most…healthy alternative though. Her skill in combat boiled down to pecking at opponents’ eyes and perhaps dropping a load onto their heads to surprise them. And if Ssanya could shift into a snake, that was nice, but even venom would hardly help against an armoured enemy keen to take her head. No, they needed to utilise different means. Like Ssanya, she skimmed over the area, but for different reasons. An idea had struck her mind, and when she spotted an open window in the roof of their tormentor’s home, she made up her mind.. They could wreak havoc, and would not need to lose a single feather – or scale – if they were careful about it. Before they could plan a tactical approach, of course, they needed to avoid ending up impaled on a sword or whatever this man had planned out for Ssanya and Fara, when he realized with whom she was siding. “Don’t be foolish,” she whispered in the other woman’s ear. “If what he said is true and you’re a snake, I have a better idea than being beaten into a pulp to save your honour. We’ll start from the inside – I can get us both into his house and he won’t have a clue!” She hoped that her urgent tone would not fall on deaf ears or enrage Ssanya further. The armoured man, in the meantime, was coming closer, his sickening smile spreading a little wider when they did not move. He did not say anything else, and Faradae felt that he would not think twice before raising his fist against them. OOCI'm aware that Kelvics are only ever mammals or birds, but Fara isn't. Also, this idea is boiling down to Fara flying Ssanya up. Weight should work with sidewinders being small and Ssanya being small even for that.

[Allassanachassanya]

"Speech"
"Others"

Her muscles clenched, and she ground her jaw, brow falling into a spiked scowl of defiance. She made up her mind, fight, but even as she looked towards the nearest alley to shed the cloth that would allow her to shift without constriction, an urgent whispered instruction came from Faradae. Ssanya turned to stare at her, ignoring a barbed taunt the black-armoured man threw their way.

"What? What isss it you need?" If there was anything she could do to provoke this man, she would do it. "I will shift now, before that man getss any closser, but let me know, pleassse!" This last phrase was spoken desperately as she turned and walked hurriedly towards the alley. The Dhani dropped her bag, and fumbled at the laces and fastenings of her clothes, stripping until she was completely naked and vulnerable on the street. Then, without any hesitation or shame, she began to shift into her Dhani form.

She seemed to stretch, fluidly, growing scales and extending and elongating as she uttered a low, thrumming hiss whose sibilance pleased her in it's ferociousness. In a short time she had fully shifted to her Dhani form, standing much taller than previously. Her skin was brown, her arms strong, her stomach a pale cream that seemed bright against the wall backdrop. Her eyes were shadowed with pointed hoods and her tail lay thick and heavy behind her.

Then she strode out of the alley, and smirked with sharp, sharp teeth at the challenger. "For Sssiku, petcher." With her wild side fully embraced, she levelled her gaze at the man and stared him down. Yet he did not waver, merely walking forwards with the same menacing gait, the same patronising smile. Allassanachassanya refused to be unsettled, but it was unnerving nonetheless.

She glanced sideways to her unlikely ally. "How isss that plan?" If possible, her accent was even more twisted and mutated by her Dhani nature, but the general meaning would be understandable at least.

OOCSo yes, hopefully Ssanya will have enough time to shift to snake form, otherwise Faradae is gonna have to carry this fat Dhani xD

[Faradae]

Faradae Faradae cursed under her breath when Ssanya hurried away from her, regretting that she had not shared her plan immediately while there still was time. Her own hesitation had driven Ssanya into what looked like fighting mode, which made it harder to take the stealthy approach, she guessed. She was not quite done being annoyed at herself when Ssanya shifted. It looked nothing like her own shifts, which were quiet, fast and almost instantaneous; the snake woman’s shift was more visible. Faradae could observe in detail as Ssanya did, in fact, shift into something that definitely reminded her of a snake. Only much, much larger. And with arms. It was an impressive view, but also a sobering one. Faradae decided not to get on Ssanya’s bad side, and preferably not argue with any other members of her race, either, lest she be eaten in a single bite. This large a form was impossible for her to carry, of course, and now that Ssanya was engaging the sinister ophiophobe, she was not sure the was a way for her to disaggregate the situation. In fact, the man was finally snapping out of his inactivity. He stopped taunting them, lowered is black visor and approached faster, raising two armoured fists with wicked-looking spikes fortifying the knuckles. Her new form was impressive, but unless Ssanya had some venom that could etch through metal in mere moments or bone-crushing force, Faradae could see no way this was going to end well for her. She wanted to hurry after her new ally, but tripped over Ssanya’s backpack that lay on the ground where the dhani had dropped it. She scraped her knees, but the adrenaline that came with facing an armoured opponent helped her ignore the pain and get back up again. She’d have time to inspect the wounds later. By the time she was on her feet, the man had reached Ssanya and lifted his right arm to deal a slow, but forceful blow. “Please just follow me”, she called to the woman, hoping she would hear her. There was no way she could tell her what she was planning to do right there, with the man both within earshot and ready to hit them any moment now. “I’ll tell you…elsewhere.” She hurried past Ssanya, into the alleyway the dhani had just returned from. There was little good she could do here except hoping the other woman would not throw herself into a painful battle. As much as Faradae would have loved to give this man the beating he deserved, she knew she could not contribute to this battle if it was fought face-to-face. Not only was she physically smaller than both Ssanya and the man, she also had little to no fighting experience, was unarmed and a little scared. She was itching to shift and flee the scene, but that would cause her to lose the element of surprise. If Ssanya would use the last moment to dodge the man’s assault and take the stealthy approach with Faradae, she would share her plan as soon as they were out of sight and immediate danger and could be sure their foe was not following them. If she did not, Faradae would shift a few streets away and return to plaza from the other side, hoping to gain access to the man’s house while Ssanya was keeping him distracted.

[Allassanachassanya]

"Speech"
"Others"

The man's approach was gaining distance, if not speed. He was almost, almost within distance of attack, and Ssanya gobbed a mouthful of spit towards the visored foe before her attention was pulled. In her state, that of complete rage and focus, the sudden approach of the smaller woman made her blink and breathe in rapidly. But there was one thing she managed to register, and that were the semi-hushed words. It went against every fibre of her body to ignore the rising ire of attack and the resentful righteousness of Siku, but she recognised a woman with a plan when she saw one.

Immediately she ran after the woman, her feet hitting the cobbles hard. The man, arm suddenly lowered, called out tauntingly, "Running away now? You're weaker than you want to think, snake." She felt hot shame and anger boiling in her throat, waiting to spill out in venom and poisonous words, but she clamped her lips shut. As soon as she was in the relative safety of the alleyway, she rounded on Faradae with a question. "What'ssss the plan?" She was urgent, curt, not angry with her but simply on edge and unable to remember how to be polite to strangers. This wasn't a good first meeting, for either of them.

"Come, let'sssss go further." She grabbed the woman's wrist, and pulled them to the furthest part away from the plaza, where the road curved around to the backs of the houses. Now, if the man was to come, which she was deadly certain about, they would have a little more time to plan. It was darker down that end too, with three houses overhanging the narrow street and washing dangling between windows haphazardly, sleeves dangling in the slight breeze. A windchime tinkled somewhere in the quiet streets. And the man's boots thudded with clinking and clanking of armour. The peace was overlaid with dread, and the two woman suddenly knew it more keenly than ever.

She waited with hushed breathing as she half-listened for the man, and half-listened to what Faradae had to say. If it was a good plan, she would follow without speaking, shifting quickly if required in a messy blur of migrating limbs should she need to.

[Faradae]

Faradae They rushed across the plaza and dodged into the narrow curve of an alley, a dead-end. The man followed, taunting them, but he was taking his time. His metal-laden steps pierced the silence, drawing closer. He knew they had no way to turn, was certain they had no more place to flee. The taste of victory on his tongue, he savoured the fear he knew his slow approach must have been evoking. The women felt it, but Faradae forced her heartbeat slow, caught her breath and relayed the plan. “You’re a snake,” she said, not caring whether the simplicity of the term might be considered an insult. “But he doesn’t know that I’m an eagle.” She shrugged out of her pants and pulled her shirt over her head shamelessly. “Shift and I’ll carry you into his home. He won’t know what hit him.” There was no time to think about the way Ssanya had spoken, the curtness, the hint of rudeness. The steps behind them were drawing closer and the man whistled a dreadful tune. “Quickly!” Faradae did not await Ssanya’s response. Her form dissolved into a swirl of light and colour, and then rearranged itself much smaller. She was as much herself as she had been before, and yet, a small, black-chested buzzard eagle sat in the place where a young woman had been standing a heartbeat ago. Once Ssanya had completed her own transformation, she would lift off the ground and gingerly pick up the snake between her talons. The scaled body was small and weighed less than the rabbits she constantly caught while travelling, but it was long, bone-less and slippery enough to provide a challenge. While the image of a bird of prey carrying a snake was not inherently unimaginable, it was a less-than-common sight inside a city, especially in a Ravok-themed environment. She was forced to rise slowly, but by the time the man would turn the corner, she would be too high to recognize her exact race or what she was carrying. She flew a lazy circle over the adjacent quarter, leaving the man to wonder how his foes vanished into thin air, leaving nothing but a pile of clothes and a backpack behind. She approached the plaza and his home from the rear, well out of his sight, even if he chose to return to the plaza. Half across the street, Ssanya’s body almost slipped from her left talon, and she had to struggle mid-flight to grasp her more tightly. A drop from this height could be fatal. Her heart missed a beat in shock. In human shape, her hands would have gotten sweaty at this point. They made it to the roof. Faradae fluttered around the corner carefully, then dropped the rattler through the half-opened skylight she had spied earlier. The crack was too small to fit herself through, but Ssanya could shift and fully open the window for her. If they were fast enough, they could lock the door below and shut the man out.

[Allassanachassanya]

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Grade Rewardsss

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Ssanya

Skills

Observation: +2
Intimidation: +2
Running: +1
Lores

Alvadas Illusion: “Ravok” Winter 516
Person: Armoured hunter of ‘Change-Bloods’
Ssanya: Prideful of her race
Intimidation: Invoking your goddess
Faradae: A Kelvic eagle woman in Alvadas
Notes

This was a self-grade. Please PM if you spot anything wrong!

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Faradae

Skills

Observation: +4
Tactics: +1
Running: +1
Lores

Alvadas Illusions: Cities of Winter 516
Ssanya: Short, snake changeling woman in Alvadas
Person: Armoured hunter of ‘Change-Bloods’
Tactics: Observing the surroundings to plan an attack
Race?: Like a snake, but larger
Acrobatics: Taking a fall
Notes

I seriously loved this thread! Unfortunately, I fell into a stint on non-writing and I let the thread go abandoned. Hopefully we can write again at some point in the future! Thanks for the enjoyable adventure, even though it was cut short prematurely.

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